Earlier this month, I wanted to apply for a learner's license and approached the Thane RTO. For acquiring the same, one needs good eyesight and a disease-free body, but approaching the RTO without an agent, warrants another vital parameter – patience. For the average citizen, it takes up to four hours to procure a learner's license, and I learned it the hard way.
Earlier this month, I wanted to apply for a learner's license and approached the Thane RTO. For acquiring the same, one needs good eyesight and a disease-free body, but approaching the RTO without an agent, warrants another vital parameter – patience. For the average citizen, it takes up to four hours to procure a learner's license, and I learned it the hard way.
Why is the e-way not one's best option?
From the beginning, I decided to not seek assistance from any agent, and thus logged on to RTO's website sarathi.nic.in. As it turned out, I was unable to access it from the browser I was using, as it required a specific one to access the site.
After a series of attempts, I gave up and approached the RTO to fill the form manually. When I reached the RTO in Thane, I was told that only online appointments were allowed for the learner's driving license.
An expensive boon
Dejected, I prepared to leave, which is when an agent said he would get my work done within 30 minutes for Rs2,000. I responded that I merely wanted an online application and would do the rest myself. He agreed and took Rs200 just to log in and get me an appointment.
The four-hour-long wait begins
My ordeal started when I was asked to go to the Thane RTO on January 13 with my documents. When I entered inside, I had no clue about which window to approach to begin the process.
The agent who had got me an appointment, spotted me and insisted I take his service to 'avoid all the hassle', and when I declined, he guided me to a window to pay cash.
No boards anywhere, ergo, nowhere to go
When my turn came up, I paid the amount and was then asked to move away from the window. Once more, I was left clueless about whom to approach for the next step of the process, as there were no boards to guide me.
No 'proper' documents, no license
After asking another agent, I was told to approach another officer who would verify my documents. When he browsed through my papers, the said officer informed me that my documents were incomplete. When I tried reasoning that I had attached all the relevant documents, he told me to summon my agent. To that, I replied in the negative, so he told me to approach him with proper documentation.
Despite spending almost an hour there, I was not ready to give up, so I approached a senior officer, who examined my papers and told me that my papers were proper. I was then asked to go and get my identification done by the officer.
Somehow, I managed to reach the room where the identification process was on, but there too, I was informed that my details had not been entered into the system yet, and I thus needed to get those done first.
The 'final' stage, a misnomer?
After that was sorted, I was asked to appear for a test. Finally, I heaved a sigh of relief, I was about to wrap up the process, not knowing that there was more trouble in store.
After clearing the test, I was informed that the officer who was supposed to verify my documents hadn't signed them, and I would need to wait till the end of his lunch break.
After waiting for another 40 minutes, the officer finally came and signed my papers, after which I was issued a learner's license.
It took me total of four hours to get my license, whereas people with agents manage to get it done in 20 minutes flat.
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